Tokyo Institute of Technology: Super Smart Society Promotion Consortium hosts matching workshops for interdisciplinary research
The Super Smart Society (SSS) Promotion Consortium hosted online matching workshops for participating institutions, i.e. Consortium Partners, and Tokyo Tech students and faculty on November 18 and December 2, 2020. The aim was to match the needs of Consortium Partners with the technological and human resource seeds provided by members of Tokyo Tech, and to offer an opportunity for direct discussions that lead to the creation of cross-disciplinary research teams. In addition to the SSS Promotion Consortium, this event was co-hosted by the Tokyo Tech Academy for Super Smart Society.
During the Seeds Round on November 18, participating students presented their current research. At the Needs Round on December 2, Consortium Partners shared their company profiles and research contents. In total, 18 Consortium Partners and 29 students participated.
Seeds Round in November
The Seeds Round was attended by 28 students, 32 Tokyo Tech faculty and staff members, and 32 members from 16 Consortium Partners. After opening remarks by Kei Sakaguchi, program coordinator and professor at the School of Engineering, participating students gave brief outlines of their research. The students then moved to individual online conference rooms to present their research in more detail and conduct lively Q&A sessions and discussions with Consortium Partners. Topics ranged from flying robots to lensless inference cameras and shopping behavior patterns. outer
Online greeting from program coordinator Sakaguchi
Online greeting from program coordinator Sakaguchi
Needs Round in December
The Needs Round was attended by 26 students, 37 faculty and staff members, and 33 members from 16 Consortium Partners. After three-minute presentations by each of the participating partners, Tokyo Tech students and faculty joined active discussions in virtual conference rooms.
Members from the following Consortium Partners presented during the Needs Round:
National Institutes for Quantum and Radiological Science and Technology
National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO)
KDDI CORPORATION
Rakuten Mobile, Inc.
TOSHIBA CORPORATION
Panasonic Corporation
FUJITSU LIMITED
Azbil Corporation
Yokogawa Electric Corporation
Mazda Motor Corporation
JTEKT CORPORATION
Hitachi Industrial Equipment Systems Co., Ltd.
Kubota Corporation
At the closing ceremony, Consortium Partners selected four students for the Best Seed Award for their presentations during the Seeds Round. The workshop ended with closing remarks from two Consortium Partners — the National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO) and Mazda Motor Corporation.
Matching through workshops despite COVID-19
Despite the challenges posed by COVID-19, the SSS Promotion Consortium also held workshops in June and July of 2020 to match Tokyo Tech seeds with the needs of Consortium Partners. Student feedback from these sessions, as well as those held in late 2020, was positive, and future matching will be conducted based on this valuable feedback. Tokyo Tech is eager to continue matching the needs of businesses with the unique technology and talents available at the Institute.
Super Smart Society Promotion Consortium
Tokyo Tech founded the Super Smart Society Promotion Consortium in October 2018 to advance the realization of Society 5.0 through a next-generation education and research platform that integrates the development of human resources with joint research and development involving participating institutions. Currently, the consortium consists of 38 members including corporations, research institutions, local government bodies, and individuals.
Tokyo Tech Academy for Super Smart Society
Through a seamless, interdisciplinary academic program that spans the master’s and doctoral levels, the Tokyo Tech Academy for Super Smart Society develops professionals who can integrate physical space and cyber space while combining cutting-edge technologies in fields such as quantum science and artificial intelligence.